If Woman Can Survive
by Coru
Summary: The world as it could be is still not all it should be. The Ninth Doctor and Rose face down Cybermen and a world that still doesn't have it quite right. AU rewrite of Age of Steel, part of A Man Who Wasn't There series.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: It's all property of the Beeb.

Extra thanks to Bonnie for beta reading despite not feeling well, and thanks to queenofthecastle for her input and frequent prodding about this story :)

~*~*~*~

_"Defiant stock cannot be upgraded. Man will be reborn as Cybermen but you will perish under maximum deletion." Its arm rose toward them, and in a moment all their voices had joined together in one ominous, echoing word. "Delete!"_

~*~*~*~

There was a flash of blue light, and then a series of sparks went up in the air. Around them the Cybermen fell silent, drooping slowly to the ground. Acrid smoke reached them, bringing sour expressions to their faces even as they gaped at the motionless steel men.

"What'd you do?" Rose demanded, eyes widening comically at the cybers.

The Doctor grinned and tossed a hunk of melted plastic at her. "Sorted it!"

"This is my phone," she said, staring at the remnants of her mobile. "You melted it!"

"Saved your life — an' there's gratitude for you!" The Doctor gave her a short glare before twirling his sonic screwdriver sadly. He adjusted it and aimed for the grass, but the blue light only flickered for a moment before dying with a slow, whining hum.

"Didn't have to break my phone," Rose muttered. He rolled his eyes at her and grabbed her as a large van roared up.

"Everybody, in!" the driver, a Welsh woman, shouted at them. After only a brief moment of confusion — in which Jackie Tyler attempted to run back to her home and was rather derisively called a stupid ape — they were all settled in.

"Never seen a slower getaway in my life!" the driver added.

"How did you do that?" Ricky demanded, turned to glare at the Doctor from the front seat.

"Just a bit of jiggery pokery an' a brilliant mind," he replied smugly. "Don't bother tryin', you'll just strain somethin'."

"Yeah, clever, wonderful, etcetera," Rose interrupted. "But you broke the sonic."

"It's not broken!" the Doctor said. "Just needs a bit of repair an' chargin'."

"Lemme guess." Rose gave him a more than slightly amused look. "The parts we need are in one of the rooms the TARDIS has locked off?"

"Unless she's gotten to the third storage unit past the second swimmin' pool, yeah, probably."

"Fantastic," she sighed. "So you can't fix it. _Or_ my phone," she added, narrowing her eyes.

"Nope!" He was entirely too cheerful in that proclamation.

"So we haven't got a weapon?" Ricky scowled.

"We've got weapons," his companion said, eyes narrowed. "Might not work on those metal things but they're good enough for men like him." His head tilted toward Pete Tyler.

"Leave him alone!" Rose said, voice rising angrily. "What's he done wrong?"

"Oh, you know, just laid a trap that's wiped out the government and left Lumic in charge."

"Oi!" Jackie folded her arms. "You can sod off with nonsense like that! If you think for half a second my Pete'd have anything to do with this, then you're mad, the lot of you!"

Rose's lips twitched as she repressed a smile and began to dig through her clutch for her trainers.

"You're lucky I can't reach you, and _don't_ think I don't remember you either Ricky Smith! Rita-Anne'll be hearin' about this and if I don't get my hands on you for a slap you can bet that she will!"

Ricky leaned away from the partition, paling a little. "You wouldn't tell her," he said, voice a little frightened.

Rose grinned properly as she pulled out her shoes and tugged herself free of her strappy heels. There was nothing she could do to make her dress less constricting — why she never learned about dressing up she couldn't quite say — but at least she'd be able to walk without wobbling.

"Oh wouldn't I? Accusin' my Pete! As if he didn't change your diapers when your mum was sick!"

"Jacks." Pete blushed. "What're you talkin' about?"

"That," Jackie said, pointing directly at Ricky's nose. "Is Ricky Smith, you remember, he's Mike an' Angie Smith's boy. Used to watch Star Trek an' drink up your Vitex in our livin' room, while Angie was dyin'."

"Don't matter," Ricky said. "Okay, so you took care of me when I was a kid, an' maybe you didn't plan on this tonight but you're still a part of it. Still gives us the right to execute you."

The Doctor snorted. "Still an idiot, even in a parallel world. One more word like that, Mickey, an' Pete Tyler'll be the least of your problems."

"My name's _Ricky_," he corrected, over-enunciating. "An' I'll say what I want. It's what he deserves. We have evidence that says Pete Tyler's been workin' for Lumic since twenty-point-five."

Jackie slowly turned and looked at her husband. "'S that true, Pete?"

"Jacks…" Pete sounded strained, even to Rose's ears.

"Tell 'em, Mrs. M!" Ricky said.

"We've got a government mole who feeds us information; Lumic's private files, his South American operations…the lot. Secret broadcasts twice a week."

"Broadcast from Gemini?" Pete asked suddenly.

"An' how d'you know that?" Ricky demanded.

"I'm Gemini. That's _me_."

"Yeah, well, you would say that."

"Encrypted wavelength six-five-seven, using binary nine." Pete's voice was getting increasingly frustrated. "That's the only reason I was workin' for Lumic. To get _information_. I thought I was broadcasting to the Security Services, an' what do I get? Scooby Doo an' his gang - they've even got the van!"

"Oi!" Ricky frowned. "We…I mean, least we're tryin' yeah? Out here, fightin' the good fight! Not lettin' ourselves be _brainwashed_ like all o' you."

"You watch who you're callin' brainwashed up there." Jackie pointed a finger threateningly. "I know my own mind an' don't you doubt it!"

"Not influenced a bit, Jackie Tyler?" The Doctor interrupted. "Not acceptin' expensive gifts without questionin' motives? Say, diamond earpods?"

"How'd you know they were gifts?" she demanded.

"Thought 's much." He leaned over and plucked the pods from both her and Pete's ears — ignoring the _very_ vocal and almost physical response from Jackie. "Wouldn't trust these things, never know who's listenin'. Toss'em out the window," he instructed, passing them through the partition to the blonde man beside Ricky. "Can't have him trackin' us."

"Yeah…" Rose paused and looked to the man who was not her father. "I knew you weren't a traitor," she told him quietly.

"Oh, why's that, then?"

Rose felt eyes on her and glanced at the Doctor; his eyes were focused directly on hers but his expression was flat and cool as steel. "I — I dunno." She stumbled a little over the words. "I just did."

"'S this you not talkin' to 'em, then?" the Doctor asked suddenly.

"Doctor…"

"'Cause if it is, might do to tell you that you're doin' it wrong."

Rose narrowed her eyes. "Alright, your point's made."

"Really, 's pretty simple; all it takes is _not_ openin' your mouth an' _not_ puttin' your foot in…"

"Oh? Well, you'd be the one to ask about it. What's that they say about 'those who can't do, teach'?"

"Not to interrupt this lovely spat," 'Mrs. M' called back. "But would any of you happen to have an idea on a destination for this getaway?"

"Go into the city," the Doctor replied, his voice still dark and snappish. "Lumic's over his head. Gone mad with power, thinks he can control the world but he's just a businessman, an' he's assassinated a world leader. The authorities will sort him quick enough once they know."

"You're…going to tell the police?" Rose raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Some things are best left to the locals, Rose," the Doctor said coolly. "Without our interference."

Rose leaned back against her seat with her arms folded across her chest and levelled a fierce glare at the Doctor.

"Well…I can see this is going to be a fun drive," Pete muttered.

~*~*~*~

The earpods were useful as far more than tracking devices and download links; by the time they had reached the city centre the small machines were blinking merrily in the ears of every human being. Or at least in the ears of every human being who was currently making his or her way toward Lumic's headquarters.

"What's going on?" Rose stared at the steady progression of Londoners.

"Mind-control," the Doctor said, his lip curling in distaste. "He's usin' the earpods."

"Can't we just, I dunno, take them off?" Rose reached for a man walking past; the Doctor grabbed her arms and pulled her rather roughly away.

"Don't touch them!" His tone was harsh and she flinched away. "With these little human brains? They can't handle somethin' like that, you'd kill them the second you pulled the pods off."

"Sorry," Rose folded her arms and scowled.

"You lot, always natterin' on about free will an' the second someone comes along offerin' the chance to give it up an' live an easy life without thinkin', half the planet accepts it without a fight. Might be I should just leave you to it."

"Or maybe it's the other half we're supposed to help?" Rose pointed out, rather angrily. He shrugged, but ignored her tone in favour of joining Ricky and his friend — Jake — as they peered around the corner. "Where're they all goin'?" she asked, following.

"To be converted," the Doctor said, eyes narrowing at the people. "Upgraded, like they said. Lumic must've planned it all. He's smarter than I thought."

"Battersea," Pete interrupted. "That's where he was building his prototypes."

"Why's he doin' it?" Rose asked.

"He's dyin'." Pete said. "This all started out as a way of prolonging life; keeping the brain alive…at any cost."

"Doctor?" Rose waited until she had his attention. "Thing is, I've seen those things before, haven't I? Those handle shapes in Van Statten's museum?"

"We've got our own set," the Doctor replied. "Different history in a different universe; same idea. Prone to takin' over unwillin' planets — never quite managed on your Earth, you're welcome by the way."

"What the hell are you two on about?" Pete glanced between the pair.

"Never mind that," Ricky interrupted. "Come on, we need to get out of the city." He turned to look at the Cybermen fast approaching and quickly ordered the group to split up; their driver, Mrs. Moore, was instructed to watch the rest of the group while he and Jake caused a distraction elsewhere.

"He's gonna get himself killed," Rose said, watching the confident young man run off.

"He's not Mickey," the Doctor reminded her. "Even if he was, 's not like you've ever let that stop you from runnin' off after somethin' new an' shiny."

Her eyes widened. "Wow." She swallowed hard and her mouth set in a firm line. "Okay, yeah." She gave a single nod before she turned on the heel of her pretty pink converses and stalked after the rest of the group. Rose slid between her not-parents and took firm hold of both their hands, ignoring the strange looks she received from them in response.

The Doctor's hands were empty and tightly fisted in the leather confines of his jacket. He chose not to think too closely on that fact as he followed a very real example of what could have been.

~*~*~*~

It was not too long before the group had reunited and moved to approach Lumic's factories, settled firmly along the bank of the Thames.

"Entire population of London, headin' into that building," the Doctor said quietly as they peered across the river. "To be upgraded into monsters."

"So, we gotta get in there an' shut it down, yeah?" Rose looked at him, but did not move from her place between the Tylers.

"Oh? Is that the plan?" He was not sure _why_ he kept provoking her, but he was at least being quite successful at it. He wouldn't want it getting around that he did things half-heartedly.

"Right," Rose said firmly. "Time to figure out how it's gonna be done; if the Doctor's too busy bein' a git then we'll sort it on our own." She raised an eyebrow at him; the unspoken 'are you done?' quite clear in her face.

"Takin' control, Rose Tyler?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow right back, his silent 'no' just as obvious.

"Well," the strong voice of Mrs. Moore interrupted yet another burgeoning argument. "I have a bit of information that might be of use before we begin?"

The group quickly surrounded her as she grabbed a weighty laptop from her bag and with a few clicks of the keyboard pulled up a 3D graphic of the building opposite.

"That's a schematic of the old factory," Mrs. Moore said. "Look, cooling tunnels, underneath the plant…big enough to walk through."

"Could get under there an' walk straight up into the control centre," the Doctor murmured. "Fantastic."

"We should split up," Rose said suddenly. "Can't all go in one way, can we? I mean, one Cyberman and we're all caught, yeah?"

"What would you suggest; the front door?" Jackie snorted derisively. "You're mad, the lot of you. You think you could sneak past those things?"

"You could," Mrs. Moore said as she began to rifle through her bag again. "With these." She opened her hand and revealed two pair of softly blinking earpods. "Fake earpods. Dead; no signal, but put them on and the Cybermen would mistake you for one of the crowd."

"I'll do it," Pete replied. Jackie gaped at him and began to shake her head. "Look, Jacks…" He stopped and sighed. "It's part my fault, okay? I've got to help. An' I know the way in through the front door. I can get to Lumic and stop him."

"I'll come with you." There was a pause as everyone looked at Rose. She folded her arms and set her face in resolve. "He can't go alone, an' they all think he deserves to die."

The Doctor wore a carefully neutral expression. "Alright," he said with a shrug. "That your decision then?" She nodded, only the slightest pause betraying her hesitation. "Right. We've got to deactivate the earpods an' stop the conversions; there'll be a transmitter — somewhere high up." He almost glanced toward the massive Millennium Wheel, and came even closer to smiling as Rose's eyes twitched in the same direction. He spun quickly, his eyes scanning the sky for something out of place.

"How 'bout his zeppelin?" the suggestion came from another Tyler woman. Jackie raised an eyebrow when he gaped at her. "Hardly comes down these days, does he? If he was gonna have his tech somewhere, it'd be on that ship where he can watch."

Rose fairly beamed at her. "That's brilliant," she said, turning her grin on the Doctor. "She's right, isn't she? Wouldn't the zeppelin be the place?"

"Good a plan as any," the Doctor replied, shrugging. "Gives us cover on all three levels, above, below an' straight in. Who wants to go above?"

"If we're working with computers, it's probably best that I go," Mrs. Moore replied. "Jake, Ricky, with me?"

"You got it, Mrs. M," Jake replied with a grin.

"Preachers to the end," Ricky added, just a bit fiercely.

"Right then, you three up there shuttin' off the earpods," the Doctor said, pointing to the dirigible. "Pete an' Rose, front doors, me below, we go through all three levels an' stop the upgrades."

Rose bit her lip and looked at him significantly. He raised an eyebrow. "You forgot something," she said after he failed to understand her glances. She looked past his shoulder and waited as he glanced back…and his face fell.

"She's _not_ comin' with me!" the Doctor said, folding his arms and pursing his lips. "I've had enough Jackie Tyler to last me a couple of lifetimes."

"She can't just sit here," Rose said patiently. "She can't come with me an' Pete 'cause we've only got the two sets of earpods, an' there's already three goin' up on the zeppelin."

"Oi, do you mind not pretendin' I'm thick? I can hear you!" Jackie stood, arms akimbo, and glared at them. "And I am _not_ goin' in there with any of you!"

"Jackie, you can't just stay out here," Pete argued.

"Who said I would?" Jackie shot back. "You're all mad, an' I'm _not_ gonna sit around and watch you kill yourself. You want to go through this daft scheme, on your own head!" With that she turned and flounced down the hill, before realizing a bit belatedly that flouncing was a bad idea when hiding from cybernetic men. She began to creep cautiously along the grass, completely ignoring the rather frantic whispered calls from her husband.

"She's not comin' back," Rose said quietly, placing her hand gently on his arm. "She'll be okay. She can watch out for herself, she's smart." She ignored the impolite snort from the Doctor. "She's probably safer hidin' on her own than with us anyway, yeah?"

"Yeah," he agreed, taking a deep breath and forcing a taut smile for her. "In we go, eh?"

The Doctor watched them both for a long, silent moment before turning and making his way toward the cooling tunnels.

~*~*~*~


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, BBC owns it all.

Beta: Extra huge thanks to Bonnie for beta reading despite not feeling well, and much, much gratitude for the input (and constant prodding) of queenofthecastle!

AN: Okay, before anyone waves the 'Rose was born in 1987' flag at me here's my theory on Rose's age: She was born in mid-April '86, making her 18 when she ran off with the Doctor in March 2005. She's close enough to 19 that she might have just stretched the truth when she told the Doctor (thus him saying she's 19 in Unquiet Dead), she would still be 19 by Jackie's standards in March of 2006, and she would be 26 in 2012, as stated in Dalek. As for Father's Day…well, either the baby was miscast and should have been an eighteen month old, or pretend it happened in 1986 instead, either way works.

~*~*~*~

The silent march into the factory was nerve-wracking, putting it mildly. Actually that was a bit more than mildly — her feelings were to 'nerve-wracking' the way a Ghost Chili was to a green pepper.

"Calm down." Pete's voice was low and comforting from behind her, though muffled as he tried to keep his lips motionless. "You're ramrod straight."

"Can't help it," Rose mumbled back. "How far?"

"Turn left after the next unit," he said.

She turned sharply on her heel and continued her slow, steady march away from lines of people waiting to be upgraded. They turned another corner and the façade broke, they huddled behind one of the great conversion units and attempted to gather their wits.

"He called you a Tyler."

Rose jumped at Pete's voice, just behind her ear. She shook her head and dragged her eyes away from the helpless citizens of London. "What?"

"Rose Tyler," Pete said. "That's what he called you. And you…you mentioned parallel worlds."

She swallowed and met his gaze. "Yeah," she replied, nodding slowly. She took a deep breath and bit her lip before continuing. "My full name is Rose Marion Tyler. Born in April, nineteen eighty-six to Jacqueline Andrea Suzette Prentice and Peter Alan Tyler."

Pete stared at her for a long moment; he blanched and shook his head, stepping back from her. "This way," he muttered, keeping well away from her as they crept along the stacks.

Rose took several deep, shuddering breaths as she followed, but did not say another word.

~*~*~*~

A tiny beam of light sliced through the darkness of the cement passage. The origin of the light — a rather tiny torch that was attached to a rather large ring of keys — was tightly clutched in a large and tense hand.

"An' today the role of petulant five year old without his teddy will be played by The Doctor." The fact that he was paying very little attention to his surroundings would probably be a problem for him at some point, but he found he was quite busy berating himself. "Surprised I didn't just demand my key back an' make it a proper repeat. Right paragon of maturity, me."

He rolled his eyes at himself and stomped as hard as he dared as he trekked along the very-nearly pitch black halls.

"Might as well start eatin' pickled onions an' callin' myself Mickey," he muttered darkly. That was when he noticed jolts of movement along the wall, and he began to run as the Cybermen woke.

~*~*~*~

The transmitter controls, placed in what should have been a very secure metal case, smoked merrily in the cabin of the zeppelin. Jake and Ricky stared, slack-jawed, at the thing which had been a small and handy explosive.

"You know," Mrs. Moore said casually as she stared at the obliterated controls, tossing a spare pulse bomb casually in one hand. "Sometimes I think I'm quite brilliant."

The robot that clenched its fist around her neck, crushing her windpipe a moment later did not seem to agree.

~*~*~*~

"What's happenin'?" Rose demanded as screams began to ring through the factory.

"The earpods've lost control." Pete had to shout to be heard over the din. "Everybody's panicking!"

"Yeah, I caught that, thanks!" Rose glanced from him to the rushing mass. "Get to the controls, okay? There's gotta be a way to shut them down, but first I've gotta help them get out before the Cybermen decide to start killin' the 'defiant stock'!"

Pete had a hold of her arm before she could take a single step away. "You think I'm gonna let you run off alone? Risk your life like that?"

"It's what we do," she met his eyes squarely. "Someone's got to, an' right now that's me. 'Cause I don't know where the controls are or anything about 'em if I did, but this I can do, yeah?"

"Look." Pete took a deep breath and tightened his hold on her wrist. "Look, okay, if what you're sayin' is true then you're my daughter, an' I'm not sayin' I believe it — but I'm not lettin' you go off to get yourself killed."

Rose threw her free arm around his neck and hugged him tightly. "You'd make a fantastic dad," she said, smiling brilliantly at him, eyes just a bit too bright. "We just never got the chance to know it." She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek and took advantage of his surprise; she ran out of the shadows and began to pull the hapless citizens who had frozen in shock.

More quickly than he could have imagined she had rushed into the crowd, pushing, shoving and calling people toward the great metal doors that marked the exit.

~*~*~*~

The Doctor rolled his eyes as he was marched into the control centre of the factory. Dingy, grey and poorly lit. Just like a dozen other evil lairs he'd been held in over the centuries — really, couldn't they put just a bit more creativity into it? Just to break the monotony?

Fifteen minutes, and a bit of exceptional brilliance on his part later, he had convinced the megalomaniac to reveal his plot, his method and received rather clear instructions on how to defeat him. It was all a bit depressing really, how easy it was getting to defeat these madmen.

In fact, the most difficult part of the adventure was tracking down Pete — who had been rather useful in the disabling of the microchips controlling the Cybermen, thank you Mr. Lumic — and then, quite a bit more worrying, Rose. Rose, who had seen fit to wander off and find trouble, and had gone straight to Peter Alan Tyler when she found them; Rose who had allowed herself to be pulled into an embrace that was entirely too close to familial for the Doctor's peace of mind.

After a moment she stepped back from her not-quite-father and threw her arms around the Doctor; she took a long, deep breath and smiled at him as she pulled back. "You alright?" She checked softly.

"Always alright, me," he replied glibly. "Just pickin' up me property." He pulled his hands out of his pockets, revealing fistfuls of assorted junk. "Apparently I struck them as dangerous," he sounded a bit proud of this fact, "so they wandered off with my stuff!"

She grinned and assessed the sum total value of his 'property' — a tin of cinnamon mints, a neon purple yo-yo, a ripped white paper bag and several candies which had probably been in the bag at some point, along with his singed sonic screwdriver and a large tangle of keys. The vast majority of his collection could have been purchased at any shop in London for less than five pounds altogether.

Rose tilted her head. "What're they for?" She frowned at the jingling mass hanging from his forefinger.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow and shoved the lot back in his pockets. "Never seen a key ring before?" He held it back up and waved it a little, letting the numerous bits of metal clink loudly against one another.

"Of course I've seen a key ring!" Rose rolled her eyes at him as he started to hurry through the corridors. "Why've you got keys?"

"You really just ask me that?" He gave her a significant look and began to speed up. "The answer of '_openin' locks_' didn't occur to you straight off?"

"You only ever open the TARDIS is all," Rose replied, starting to have a bit of trouble keeping up conversation and their stride. "So unless you've got forty-seven copies of the TARDIS key —"

"Rose Tyler, you think that in all of time an' space the only thing I've ever had a key to is the TARDIS?" He glanced at her as they ran, eyebrows raised slightly. "No one's ever welcomed me back to visit? Haven't got any lockers in railroad stations?"

"Well you've got the sonic screwdriver is all!" Rose's voice sounded just a bit strained. "You could just get in when you wanted!"

"An' that's not rude, is it?" He grabbed her arm and forced her to keep pace as they climbed the stairs. "Breakin' an' enterin'? What do they teach in schools these -"

"Oh, shut up!" Rose swiped at him with her free hand and put on an extra burst of speed as they reached the roof, Pete still pounding up the stairs behind them.

There was nothing. No zeppelin, no Ricky or Jake or Mrs. Moore. They'd been abandoned.

"I…I can't believe it," Rose said quietly, stooping by the singed corpses of the guards. "They left us." Her eyes stung, and she muttered something about the heat as she wiped fiercely at them.

"No way down," Pete panted; he was nearly doubled over as he rested his hands against his knees. He pointed with one weak arm to the stairs they had just climbed. "It's getting hotter that way too."

"Stop bein' such a pessimist!" The Doctor was entirely too cheerful as he looked up at the inky-black sky. "An' who says we want down anyway?"

From the depths of the billowing smoke a ladder was slowly dropping to the roof of the factory.

"They came back!" Rose bounced on her heels, beaming up at the zeppelin.

"No," Pete said, shaking his head. "That's not Lumic's zeppelin, look!" He pointed to the logo on the bottom. "That's from a bloody tour!"

"From a what?" Rose gaped up at it.

Suddenly a face appeared in the hatch. "Well, are you just gonna stand there or are you gonna climb?"

They froze.

"JACKIE?" Pete grabbed the rope-ladder, steadying it. "Where did you — how did you —"

"Shelly owed me a favour an' _don't_ ask questions, I'm busy!" She shot them all fierce glares and then vanished back into the airship.

"I don't expect I'll ever say this again, so enjoy it while you can, Rose Tyler," the Doctor said gruffly. "Do as Jackie says!"

The fierce scramble up the ladder was more difficult than Rose had expected it to be, but the small party managed it and soon found themselves in the crassly decorated cabin, staring at a rather defensive Jackie Tyler.

"Who was —" Pete broke off and looked around in confusion at the otherwise empty room. "Jacks?"

"Took lessons." She shrugged awkwardly. "Kept hopin' you'd buy me that zeppelin, an' I wanted to know how to fly it. I figured I might as well get some use out of it since I'll never have my own." The last was added with a rather dark look in his direction.

Pete laughed once before crossing the room and tugging her against him. "Jackie Tyler, you're not half spoiled," he told her warmly. "You're the only person in the world who can turn savin' her husband's life into a whinge about poor birthday presents."

She rolled her eyes but wrapped her arms around his neck anyway. "Think I did it to save your life? You should be so lucky, stupid lump," Jackie replied. "Just wanted a bit of a ride." There was a short pause before she grabbed the back of his head and pulled him down for a kiss.

Despite the intimacy of the moment, Rose could not tear her eyes away; the Doctor showed no reaction, but his knuckles, wrapped around a handrail, were white with tension.

~*~*~*~

It was over; any living cybernetic men would be rounded up and dealt with at the hands of the government, and the factories — on all seven continents — would be demolished. Jackie was determined to get credit for her good deeds, and the Doctor had already vanished into the depths of the TARDIS.

And Pete Tyler stared into the face of what could have been. His eyes, his mother's chin. His wife's vocal chords.

"You…could stay," he offered quietly. "Never had a daughter. I could be a good dad."

"You could." Rose bit her lip. "But I can't. I'm sorry, but…" She glanced back at the TARDIS, through the open door to the man at the console. "You know?"

He smiled sadly. "Yeah. He's a bit old for you, from a dad's perspective…but still, I know. An' you've got your own Jackie, wouldn't want to leave her alone."

"Yeah," she said, a small sigh escaping her. "Can't leave Mum. At least you've still got her…yeah?" She nodded to the woman arguing heatedly with a policeman.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Think we'll work on it, Jacks an' me. Not too late for kids, like you said…an' now I know we can turn one out not too bad."

"Just, if it's a girl, don't let her drop out of school, yeah?" She frowned. "Especially not for a twenty-somethin' bloke with a guitar an' no money."

"It's a promise." Pete grinned and quickly wrapped the younger girl in a tight hug. "You take care of yourself, and your bloke there. Don't let him treat you like he's better than you either, 'cause you're a Tyler and there's nothing better than that."

There was a peculiar lump in her throat that prevented and answer, but she nodded quickly and returned the embrace fiercely. "Take care, yeah?" She finally choked out.

He cupped her face gently in on hand and pressed his lips to her temple. He pulled back and grinned at her before taking her shoulders and turning her sharply toward the TARDIS. "Go on, go be Jackie's daughter." She tilted her head at him, raising a brow. "Oh c'mon, he deserves it after all that."

Rose laughed once and nodded. Her hand slid into his, and she gave it a brief squeeze before straightening her back and marching toward the timeship.

The Doctor was studiously not watching her as she stepped on board the ship and closed the door behind her; his tuxedo jacket had been tossed over the jump seat and the stiff white cotton of his shirt had been loosened — his bowtie she couldn't even see in the room.

"We ready then?" she asked lightly, smiling cheerily.

"Yup, just about." He paused and looked at her, waiting for a response. She pursed her lips. "Nothin' else you want to do here?" He _sounded_ impatient and a bit irritated.

"Nope," she replied, grabbing hold of the rail that circled the console. "Gonna be bumpy, yeah?"

He nodded slowly and adjusted a few dials and levers on the console. "No comin' back here," he pointed out.

"Yeah, too bad, innit? I liked Jake until he decided to ditch us. Maybe we should look up our version one of these days. You ready, Doctor?" She prodded at him again; her fingers were hovering over the button that she knew would begin the dematerialization process and all she needed was that final confirmation that it was time.

He pounded a small rubber mallet against the side of the console and nodded sharply. She slammed her hand down on the button and hung on for dear life as they were thrown into and through the Void.

After several long, violent moments the ship was still. The Doctor climbed to his feet — he had somehow ended up under the jump seat — and tapped the view screen. "We're in the Vortex," he said, just a bit proudly. "Back in the old universe."

Rose nodded and pushed herself up, sitting stiffly on the metal railing across the room. "Alright then, time to talk," she said firmly. He tensed and she pretended not to notice the way his fingers gripped the console. "Way I figure it, there's two options, yeah?"

"Oh?" He gave her a bright smile, which faltered after a moment.

"Yeah." She held up a finger. "Option one: I've done somethin'. Dunno what it was, an' I didn't mean to do it, but it hurt you an' as soon as you tell me what it was I'll tell you how sorry I am."

He deflated, his expression finally settling into something like guilt.

"No?" She nodded once. "That's what I thought." She held up a second finger with the first. "Then, option two: you've decided for whatever reason to act like a stroppy git an' take it all out on me even though I _didn't_ do anything wrong. An' that means that it's time for you to get over whatever's set you off an' apologize."

He leaned back against the console, arms folded over his chest and his countenance defiant. "Oh, is it, then?" He raised an eyebrow. "An' what if I don't think I've done anything worth apologizin' for?"

"Then you haven't been listenin' to yourself," Rose snapped. "I was, an' I'd tell you what I really thought of you today but the TARDIS is too polite to translate it!"

"Oi!" He straightened. "I saved your life, took you to meet Pete — against me own best judgement in fact — an' even got you an invite to a _better life_, doesn't that deserve a bit of gratitude?"

"A better life?" Rose stopped and gaped at him, incredulous. "Yeah, they're rich an' Pete's alive, but…he's not my dad. An' there's no — how could you say that it's better?"

"'S got everything you ever wanted, Rose Tyler," the Doctor said coolly. "Your perfect world."

"Everything?" Rose paused and stared hard at him. "You honestly think that's what I want?"

"You've gone to some pretty extreme lengths to have your father back before, so I'd say it's an indication!"

"I didn't know what would happen!" Rose stood up; her hands planted firmly on her hips. "An' that was ages ago; god, you can't still be mad!"

"An' today, that wasn't anything like it then?" The Doctor's mouth twisted mockingly. "Chasin' after him, clingin' to him like he was —"

"Like he was my dad?" Rose scowled at him. "Well he was…sort of, but in case you haven't noticed, I shut those doors an' I'm still here, with _you_!" He gave no reply to that, simply turning to glare at the view screen. She shook her head and let out an angry breath; she stalked around the console, heading straight for the privacy of her room.

Or at least, so she would have done. His hand moved, lightning fast, as she brushed past him, his fingers locking around her wrist. Her head whipped around, eyes already sparking with fury when they locked with his — and she deflated, her anger abandoning her.

"You're a git," she informed him, just a bit sulkily.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, regretfully. "No good with this stuff, me."

"I noticed," Rose said, twisting the hand he still held so that her fingers locked through his and rolling her eyes. "So what was it? Were you jealous?" She grinned a little.

"Don't be stupid." He rolled his eyes back at her, but his fingers tightened around hers despite his words.

"I think you were," she teased. She leaned close, bumping her shoulder against his; her grin widened, her tongue peeking out the left corner of her mouth.

He moved quickly but deliberately, pulling her against his chest and crushing his mouth to hers. There was no gentle prodding; he demanded control and she released it. Possession, relief, fear — they all melted wordlessly in a fierce tangle of lips and tongue. "Yes," he whispered, his voice thick.

Rose tried to remember when she had asked a question, why she had asked a question and if it was really that important to get an answer anyway. She thought on it, which was hard to do as cool lips returned to her own, and grinned against his mouth as understanding dawned. Her fingers pressed into the back of his neck as she pulled him closer, the starched collar of his shirt bunching stiffly under her bare arms. Time seemed to slow; her perception narrowed to the insistent press of skin upon skin, the rasp of unshaven scruff against her cheeks and not-quite-painful tugging as his fingers tangled in her hair. She shivered as his free hand slid over the exposed flesh at her waist — and blinked.

"What?" The Doctor pulled back, his brow furrowing at the large rend in golden silk. "When did that happen?"

Rose twisted to look at the gaping fabric, edges splattered harshly with dark red blood. She frowned, trying to remember when she might have caught herself, but nothing came to mind. But…she had been so frantic; high on adrenaline and exhaustion…it could have been at any point in the factory.

"Doesn't look like they got me," she said, poking at the skin beneath the dress. "Not even a scratch."

The Doctor bent, bringing his face close to the tear. He pressed his lips against her unblemished skin and grinned as her muscles jumped beneath his touch. "Did I mention you looked beautiful in this?" He asked, standing again and wrapping his arms loosely around her torso.

"Might've," Rose said, letting out a sudden, bone-deep yawn and resting her head on his shoulder. "You looked pretty alright yourself," she added, smiling softly as her eyes drifted shut.

"Oh, I know." His tone was entirely too smug.

She opened one eye to peer at him curiously.

"Knew the second you saw me," he continued blithely. He leaned down, his cool cheek against the curve of her neck. "This nose isn't just a decoration, you know." He grinned as her skin flushed.

"You mean — you could smell that I thought —"

"You humans - dumpin' chemicals in the air for every emotion." He 'tsk'ed at her lightly, his lips just brushing her shoulder as he breathed deep.

"That's — that's not even a little bit fair." Rose tried to sound stern.

"Superior physiology, can't help it," the Doctor said, once again smug. "An' now," he added, turning her sharply to the right. "You, Rose Tyler, are goin' to sleep, because your inferior human physiology is 'bout to make you fall over."

"What, am I dumpin' sleepy hormones now?" Rose grumbled a little as he led her toward the hall.

"Nope, used my superior Time Lord eyes to see the fact that yours keep closin'," he grinned at her. "An' I'm not carryin' you to your room if you pass out on the jump seat."

"Mmm…'s a shame," Rose smiled sleepily. She tilted her head up, biting her lip rather nervously. "Doctor?"

"Hmm?"

"Could we go to London tomorrow?"

She felt his muscles tense where she still leaned against him. "If you want," he replied neutrally.

"Just…want to see Mum," she continued, lacing her fingers through his. "An'…I sort of want to talk to Mickey. I know it's stupid, but…I gotta see they're okay, yeah?"

"Not stupid," he corrected, stopping her in front of her door. "It's a bit much, seein' how things might have turned out. Seen it before, me. Don't blame you for wantin' your mummy after."

"Oi," she swatted at him lightly and smiled. "Good night then, Doctor."

He nodded and shoved his hands in his jacket pockets, waiting until her bedroom door had shut behind her before moving deeper into his ship. It had been a rather trying day, and even Time Lords needed to sleep on occasion.

Maybe the TARDIS would even give him his razor back, if he promised to clean those rusted transtemporal thermocoils, and that was a terribly essential job — one he shouldn't put off just for tea at a typical English flat, certainly…he grinned and whistled a little to himself as he made the trek back to his own quarters.


End file.
